Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

This summer, while I had the time, I decided to teach myself some easy recipes for when I am living on my own. These Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers have got to be one of my favorite recipes I have ever tried. They are super easy to make (it only takes about twenty minutes to prepare the peppers before you pop them in the oven) and really versatile (you can stuff the peppers or set aside the mixture and eat it with chips as a snack).

Bonus: You don’t need to cook any meat to enjoy this tasty meal! While I’m not a vegetarian (right now), I do try to eat a low-meat diet, and finding a vegetarian substitute for meals that typically call for meat is one of my favorite things.

I like to cook enough so that I can eat leftovers for a couple of days, but if you’re only cooking for one and don’t really like leftovers (don’t worry, plenty of my friends hate leftovers, too), feel free to half the recipe. One pepper typically fills me up.

Enjoy!

Prep Time: 20 minutesCook Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 6 peppers

Ingredients

6 bell peppers (any color)
1 package of Morningstar Farms Black Bean Crumbles (can purchase at Target)
3 cups cooked quinoa and rice (You can make just quinoa or just rice if you prefer, I just like a blend.)
2 cups Mexican cheese
1 cup of salsa (feel free to make your own, but I purchase the mild, Tostito’s salsa and it works really well)
Optional toppings: avocado, cilantro, lime juice, mushrooms, or anything else you typically like to get with a bowl or burrito at Chipotle

Directions1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. Wash the peppers, and slice the tops off. Take the core out of the peppers and arrange on a tray that you will stick in the oven (make sure the open cavity is facing up so you can fill the peppers).

3. Prepare the Morningstar Farms Black Bean Crumbles according to the directions on the package. (This takes about 10 minutes.)

4. Prepare the quinoa according to the directions on the package. (You can do this while the black bean crumbles are cooking. It will take about 20 minutes depending on the type of starch you want.)